Yesterday's afternoon showdown with New Jersey was a heartbreaker. The sad thing is this isn't the first time we've bemoaned a late-game rebound that slipped under the pads of a Caps goalie. But they played their hearts out and were beaten by the best goalie in the league. As The Peerless put it;
It was too much Martin Brodeur, who stopped 37 of 38 shots
The Caps took 3 points out of a possible 6 on their Southeast swing, which earned them a "C+" from the guys at OFB.
Of a possible six points among this week
Well yesterday was an adventure. The Rangers played tough, but the Caps pulled out the win. A big part of the win was Olie's stellar performance between the pipes. Apparently Tarik and Coach Boudreau thought so too.
It was among Kolzig's best performances this season. He looked fresh. He controlled his rebounds, and most important, he came up with a handful of momentum-changing stops. Just ask Sean Avery and Ryan Hollweg.
It was a great game, and the back and forth between the Rangers and Caps fans added a level of intensity I haven't seen in the Verizon before. Some people apparently weren't as thrilled, with Caps Chick feeling as such;
So a thrilling end to a rather dull looking game for the Caps slides them back on top of the Southeast, and again we add...for now. 'For now' will be the motto until this team opens up a significant lead in the division, and it can be done, as four of the next five games are against division opponents. Perfect time for the Caps to get on that roll we've all been waiting for, isn't it?
I don't know about boring, but it will certainly be a while before we can feel comfortable about being in first.
Apparently I was thinking along the same lines as JP yesterday, because according to him;
Yesterday's game had it all - great goals, big saves, crunching hits and... wait. Yesterday's game didn't have it all, as it lacked what has become the one constant in Caps/Rangers games: Donald Brashear beating the crap out of Colton Orr.
So JP threw up a nice little video of Donny beating Orr's face in and dropping him to the ice, all in a matter of about 4 punches. It would have been so much better if they had shown it on the big screen during the game yesterday.
And if things couldn't get any better, it appears that 2 Canadiens players were arrested in Tampa last night outside of a nightclub. According to Greg Wyshynski;
Canadiens defenseman Ryan O'Byrne and forward Tom Kostopoulos spent last night in a Tampa holding cell after O'Byrne was charged with grand theft and Kostopoulos was charged with resisting an officer without violence.
Apparently O'Byrne stole a woman's purse and cell phone, then tried to tell the police they belonged to his girlfriend. I know hockey may not pay as much as other sports, but I don't think players need to resort to stealing pocketbooks. Besides, the dollar isn't even worth as much in Canada anymore, so I don't know what they were thinking.
On Frozen Blog has a recent post titled, "A Savior Ascends." It revolved around the recent work of Alex Ovechkin, and his act of single-handedly reviving hockey in DC and the playoff hopes of the Caps. While being a star in his first 2 1/2 years in the NHL, he was always a step behind the hyped-up Crosby. With Sid the Kid out with a high ankle sprain, Ovie has been given the opportunity to step into the spotlight, and has not disappointed. He saved the the breakaway trick competition at the All-Star Game from what seemed like mediocre at best. Guys had been given plenty of notice on how it would work, yet no one pulled out a great move until maybe Kovalchuk from his knees. But once Ovie made the final, he blew everyone away, even if he didn't score. Then he christened the Ovechkin hat trick; a broken something, stitches, and a goal, preferably each period plus overtime. Those of us in DC knew we were getting the best, and now the media is beginning to realize it too.
But while Ovie is tearing it up as always, the Caps are hoping for a different kind of savior, this one in the form of Eric Fehr. After months and months of recovering from a back problem which turned out to be a herniated disc that kept getting worse, he is back with the Caps. The Caps are desperate for some secondary scoring, and bringing back Fehr allows Kozlov to center the second line, and Gordon and Laich to resume checking duties full-time. We know Ovechkin can produce, but here's hoping that the mix-up will increase scoring among lines other than the 1st.
The Peerless, looking ahead as always, has the midseason draft rankings from Central Scouting.
If the draft were to be held today, the Caps (should they not win the Stanley Cup) appear to be in the seventh overall position in the first round.
I for one wouldn't mind losing a few spots if it means skating a few more games after the regular season.
And lastly, JP over at Japers' Rink is getting an early jump on the latest Caps free agent signing rumors.
Now that Alex Ovechkin is signed for the next 13 years, it's time for the entitled, rumor-mongering journos in "real" hockey cities to turn their attentions elsewhere. To that end, I thought I'd give them a head start on Nicklas Backstrom rumors (hey, he'll be a Restricted Free Agent in two short years).In an interview with Canwest News Service, when asked what his favorite city to play in on the road is, Nick responded "I would have to say Montreal. The crowd is unbelievable and it's always a lot of people and it's a great city, too."
So there you have it - Nicklas Backstrom wants out of his contract in D.C. so he can play for Les Habitants. Have at it, Jack Todd.
Well hell, if Ovechkin almost went to Montreal, I'm sure Backstrom wouldn't mind heading north either. Makes perfect sense to me. I wonder how Todd got beat to the punch?
